


Fluffy Music

by Daisy78173, Roosterteethlover



Series: Fluffy moments [23]
Category: RWBY
Genre: And does some other music stuff, Fluff, I don't know how people make dubstep, I wish they had interacted more, It probably would have been nice, Marrow play the violin, Music, Weiss is a lovely lady, marrow is a good boi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-25
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:09:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24378523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daisy78173/pseuds/Daisy78173, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Roosterteethlover/pseuds/Roosterteethlover
Summary: Weiss is walking in the garden on night and hears something lovely. What happens when she finds out who's playing? Find out this time! On fluffy moments!
Relationships: Marrow Amin & Weiss Schnee
Series: Fluffy moments [23]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1564159
Comments: 10
Kudos: 21





	Fluffy Music

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Akira_Cato](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akira_Cato/gifts).



> This was a request from Akira_Cato! Sorry it took so long to get it done! I hope you enjoy!

As the days went on, Weiss found herself walking more and more often in the Academy gardens. It was a peaceful place, and if she came at the right times she could be completely alone with her thoughts. She loved her te-her new family, with all her heart, but they could be a little...rowdy. So it was nice to get away from it all and walk among the plant life every now and then. 

This had been one of those nights. It had been a rather long day and with the impromptu video game tournament that had happened, well, it was safe to say that Weiss needed a little air. The gardens were just as quiet as usual and Weiss was meandering along the path, simply allowing her imagination to set the pace and her feet to lead her where they may. Her day dream was brought to a sudden halt though when she heard soft music from ahead of her. It sounded like a violin, and as she listened closer she realized that the song was Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen. She had sung it enough time to recognize the tune, and it seemed whoever was playing was incredibly gifted, the song held such emotion with each pull of the bow across the strings. 

Weiss walked towards the sound, she wanted, no, she needed to know who was playing such beautiful music. Turning a corner she was stunned at what she found, sitting before her was none other than Marrow. She hadn’t spent much time with Marrow personally, he didn't seem to like her much though from the few interactions they had. Not that she could blame him. With the way her family had treated faunus, and how complacent she was in it for years. It wasn’t surprising he didn’t like her much. 

But she had also changed so much, she wasn’t like her father, or her mother, she was a different person now. Maybe this could be an opportunity to show that. After all, nothing brought people together quite like music right? So as the song came to an end, she stepped forward and took a deep breath.

“You play beautifully.” she complimented gently.

Marrow jumped up from his seat on the bench and looked at Weiss with wide eyes and his tail in his hand. 

“How long have you been there?” he exclaimed, releasing his tail.

Weiss took another step forward, “Not long, I heard you playing, it was Hallelujah right? It was beautiful.” 

“Thanks, uh, so you won’t tell the others about this, right? They don’t really know about….this.” he said, rubbing the back of his neck and gesturing to the violin on the bench.

This gave the former heiress pause, “Why not? You’re clearly a skilled player, you should show that.” 

Marrow chuckled sheepishly, “It’s not really a “huntsman” thing ya know? It’s more of a stress reliever for me.”

Well this just could not stand, “Well I disagree, music is as much a “huntsman” thing as anything else. I mean I sing, my sister plays the cello, and even students here in Atlas play! Like Flynt and Neon!”

“Wait wait wait.” Marrow interrupted, “Your sister plays the cello? I didn’t know that!”

Weiss felt her chest puff up a bit with pride, “Why yes, she does. All of us Schnee children have some musical skill, Whitley plays piano.” she delfated a bit at the next part, “Father wanted us to learn, looking back it was just so that he could show off his “talented children” to the elites. Still, I love music and I feel it has only helped me in my huntress abilities. Breath control is surprisingly useful.”

Marrow chuckled a bit at the last part and sat back down on the bench, “Yeah I guess it would be. I don’t think violin has given me any special skills on the battlefield though.”

Weiss carefully sat next him on the bench, “I disagree, holding up a violin while playing for near hours on end really builds up strength in your arms. That can help in battle, especially when you have a weapon that requires you to throw it like you do.”

“Heh, yeah I guess so.” Marrow smiled, his tail wagging a bit to the right.

Weiss smiled, this was going well. Maybe they could finally become friends, or at least not total strangers.

“Marrow, I would actually like to take this opportunity to thank you for everything. You and the other Ace Ops have made our stay, or well in my case return, here quite pleasant. So, thank you.” well, she said it. She really hoped it didn’t come off as awkward or condescending, especially since she meant every word. 

Marrow looked at her inquisitively for a moment, “Yeah...no problem.” after a short, if slightly awkward, pause “Why are you in here anyways? Most people don’t come around here this late.”

“That's the exact reason I’m here. I love my teammates don’t get me wrong, but they can be a bit much at times.” she admitted fondly.

“Alright, well, it’s getting late so I’m gonna go.” Marrow awkwardly said, standing up and grabbing his violin.

“Wait!” Weiss cried, jumping from the bench and startling Marrow, “Please. I-I wanted to ask you something.”

Marrow tilted his head and shot her a suspicious look, “What is it?”

“Well, I was hoping you might be open to a little collaboration, musician to musician.” Weiss fought the urge to duck her head as the words left her mouth. 

“No.” the abrupt answer surprised Weiss.

“Wha-you won’t even think about it?” she sputtered, shock written across her face.

“No. In case I didn’t make it clear earlier, I don’t really like people knowing about this. And as much as I appreciate all the help you and the others have been giving, I’m not too keen on “collaborating” with a Schnee.” Marrow paused, “Don’t tell Winter I said that.”

Weiss was taken aback, but she quickly gathered herself and nodded at Marrow, “I understand. After all my family has done to Faunus, I understand your reluctance to work with me. But please, think about it. We don’t have to tell anyone about it. I simply want to extend an olive branch through a mutual passion of ours. But if after you think it over, you still don’t wish to work with me. I will understand and leave you be on the matter.” a pause, “And I wont tell Winter what you said.”

Marrow looked at Weiss with an unreadable expression, “Fine. I’ll think it over. But don’t expect anything big alright?”

“Agreed.” Weiss brushed off her skirt and extended a hand to Marrow, “Have a nice night Marrow. I eagerly await your answer.”

Marrow hesitantly took her hand and gave it a single shake, “Yeah. You have a nice night as well, Weiss.”

With that the two went their separate ways, Weiss returning to the dorms where her teammates had crashed on the floor, and Marrow to his apartment to think a few things over.

~

A few days had passed since their moment in the garden, and Marrow had yet to give her an answer. She had been trying to get him alone to talk but he seemed rather keen on avoiding her. Finally though, Marrow approached her, a serious look in his eyes.

“I need to talk to you.” he said, his face giving nothing away.

“Alright.” she agreed, trailing after him to destinations unknown.

They walked in relative silence for a time, only their footsteps and the distant sound of students filling the quiet. Weiss wondered why he felt the need to go to such lengths for this, a simple yes or no would be sufficient. No need to lead her around the school to…. the gardens? He led her to the gardens? Why here of all places?

“Marrow? Why did you bring me here?” she asked with a curious tilt to her head.

“I’ll do it.” was his abrupt reply, “The music thing. I’ll do it.”

Weiss was taken slightly aback but quickly recovered, “You would? Oh this will be fantastic! When do you want to get started? I recommend right away!” Oh this was so exciting! She just couldn’t wait to get started!

“Hold it!” Marrow exclaimed, bursting Weisses happy bubble, “A few ground rules first.”

“Of course.” Weiss nodded, gesturing for him to continue. She had gotten ahead of herself, she had forgotten that Marrows wasn’t as open about his musical abilities as her. He most likely didn’t want to perform in front of a crowd. She could work with that though, this was collaboration for team building. A sort of trust exercise between the two of them, an audience wasn’t necessary.

“Number one,” Marrow began holding up a finger, “We are not doing this around other people. Got it?”

“Understood. No people.” she nodded.

He held up another finger, “Number two, I pick what we play. No questions or complaining.”

Well she could work with that, she was a versatile performer after all, “Very well.”

“And number three.” he held up three fingers with a sigh, “You tell no one of this. Not your team, not your sister, not the General, not team JNOR, not Qrow, and especially not my team. Clear?”

“As crystal.” she agreed, it might be difficult, but she would not break his trust. “I won’t tell a single soul.”

He let out a breath, looking relieved, “Good. I have a song picked out already, so look it over and get back to me.” he handed her a few pages of sheet music stapled together. She didn’t recognize the song, but she could work with this. No. She would work with this! Or she wasn’t Weiss Schnee!

“Alright. Shall we meet back here once I’ve had a chance to look this over?” she asked, excitement bubbling in her chest. This would be wonderful! It had been so long since she was able to collaborate with a fellow musician. The last time, if memory serves, was with that lovely girl who’s name escapes her. They sang a duet on one of her record deals, Nevermore was the song. It had been rather popular if she was correct. Good times. 

“Yes.” Marrow said, breaking her out of her revery, “You have my contact info, just let me know when you’re ready to start. Though I would suggest we meet at night. Fewer people.”

“Of course. I look forward to working with you.” she held out her hand for Marrow to shake. He took it, with only a short moment of hesitation, and they shook once.

“Yeah. Same here.” he said, sounding like he was regretting it already. 

She brushed it off, smiling and leaving to prepare on her own. She looked over the sheet music on her way back to her team's room. The song had been named Shatter Me, it appeared to be about someone who craved change in their life, but feared it at the same time. They were held back by their fear and they desperately wished for help, only their fear stopped them. Weiss could certainly relate to that. Her own fear had held her back for so long. Fear of standing up to her father, fear of being cut off and disowned, fear of not being able to change anything. She had gotten help though, from Winter during training, from her real family, not her father or mother. She had been lucky really, to have met so many wonderful people who gave her a reason to fight. To take a leap and act, despite her fear. 

Back at her dorm, which was empty thankfully, she read over the music a few times. It was certainly an emotional song, but she could handle that. She practiced for a while until her teammates returned and dragged her off for some new “adventure” in Mantle. She didn’t get back to the academy until later that night, and by then she was too tired to try and practice more. 

A few days passed like this, missions, practice, hanging out with her teammates, practice and repeat. She got a chance to slip away one night after her teammates went out for ice-cream, she had elected to stay behind and let them have their fun. She shot a text to Marrow to meet her in their usual spot, grabbed the sheet music, and took off. She was a bit surprised to find Marrow already there, violin case in one hand and a small speaker in the other.

“Follow me. I know a better place to practice than here.” he said once he spotted her. She nodded and followed him out of the garden, through the halls of the academy, and down a rather out-of-the-way hallway until he gestured for her to follow him into a room. She stepped through and was surprised to find a little music room inside. Music stands were scattered about, a grand piano sat in the corner, and a board with seemingly random doodles sat at the front.

“I had no idea Atlas academy had a music room.” she said with quiet awe.

“Neither did I. At least not until recently. I overheard team FNKY talking about practicing for their “next set” and decided to follow them. They led me here.” Marrow said, setting his things down. “Pretty lucky to find all things considered. We can practice here. Also, I record some extra stuff for the song, wanna give it a listen before we start?”

“I would love to!” she grinned, clasping her hands together before catching herself. “Uh, I mean, yes. I would love to listen to what you have.”

Marrow gave her a small smirk and pulled out his violin and his scroll. Turning on the speaker he connected his scroll to it and quickly tuned his violin. Once he was satisfied with how it sounded he started the music he had made. To say Weiss was shocked by it was a gross understatement, she can’t remember ever hearing this style of music before. Marrow’s violin along with whatever it was he had created combined into a breathtaking blend of musical styles. When he was done she couldn’t help but clap, he looked startled but then sheepish. It was almost like he had forgotten she was there. 

“So, you like it?” he asked, rubbing the back of his neck. 

“It was amazing! What style of music was that? I’ve never heard it before!” she exalted with a wide grin.

“Uh, it's a dubstep violin. At least, that’s what I call it.” he awkwardly chuckled. “But… it was good?”

“Good?” she asked incredulously, “Good? No. That was not simply good. That was incredible!”

Marrow’s tail began wagging, “You think?”

“Yes! It’s a shame you don’t want others to hear this! I bet they would love it!” Weiss gushed.

“Thanks, but I would really rather not have them find out.” he said, his tail drooping a bit.

Weiss gave him an apologetic look, “Alright, I won’t force you to share this. But… think about it. Please? I really think the others would like to hear what you wrote.”

Marrow looked at her and sighed, “Yeah. I’ll think about it. Now you wanna get started?”

“Yes.” she nodded, and they began.

The next couple of weeks past like that, the two would sneak away when given the chance and practice their song. Though, the practices turned less to actual practice over time and more to casually hanging out. Marrow sometimes brought snacks and Weiss brought water, they would talk, share funny stories about their teams or times in school. By the end of the second week, Weiss was quite sure she could consider him a friend, and their song was certainly perfected so their continued meets were definitely just friend hang outs. Though, unbeknownst to both of them, a certain team had stumbled upon their latest run through of the song.

The sudden clapping and cheering startled both of them. They whirled around to find team FNKY standing their whooping and clapping.

“That was amazing!” Neon cheered.

“You guys were dope!” Flynt chorused. “I had no idea an Ace Op could play like that!”

Weiss felt a blush spread across her face and looked worriedly at Marrow, who looked about ready to cry. 

“I-I um-” he managed to get out before dashing off past the students, violin and speaker in hand. The team looked at each other confused but shrugged and headed off.

Weiss herself left shortly after and sent a text to Marrow, just to make sure he was alright. He didn’t reply, only worrying Weiss further. She didn’t hear from him the next day either, but by then she was busy with her own team. Apparently team FNKY had recorded their song and posted it to the school's main site, thus everyone had seen it. Everyone.

“Why didn’t you tell us you were doing this?” Ruby questioned, almost looking hurt.

“Yeah! Why hide it?” Yang asked angrily.

“Guys, maybe we should let her explain.” Blake interjected, looking at Weiss expectantly.

Weiss gave her a grateful look and took a deep breath, “Look, I only kept this underwraps because he asked me too. He’s not a fan of people knowing about his music, no I don’t know why, but it seemed really important that no one else knew. He told me specifically not to tell you guys. I’m sorry.” 

This seemed to calm Ruby and Yang down a bit, though Yang still looked a bit pissed. “So how long has this been going on?” Yang asked.

“About… two-ish weeks?” Weiss admitted sheepishly.

“What?!” Yang cried, “You’ve been keeping this from us for two weeks?”

Ruby put a hand on Yang’s shoulder, “Yang calm down. She just told us Marrow told her not to tell us.”

Yang looked at Ruby, then at Weiss and grumbled but sat back in her chair. “So now what? You gonna keep stuff like this from us again?”

“I’m gonna try not to.” Weiss said, “At least with actually important things. This is pretty tame, you have to admit.”

“She has a point. It’s not like she kept some earth shattering revelation from us. She was just playing music with Marrow.” Blake agreed, placing a hand on Yang’s other shoulder.

“I wonder how he’s handling this.” Ruby mused.

Weiss sighed, “I hope he’s alright.”

“WEISS!” Jaune suddenly shouted as he, Nora, Ren, and Oscar all burst into the room, “Since when have you and Marrow been friends?”

“Since about a week or so ago?” she said startled. 

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Nora cried, grabbing Weiss by her shoulders and shaking her.

Ren gently took Nora’s hands off Weiss, “I’m sure she has her reasons.” 

“Yeah, let’s hear her out.” Oscar added from behind Jaune.

“I wanna hear this too.” Qrow said, showing up suddenly in the doorway.

Weiss sighed, this was gonna be a long day. She hoped Marrow was doing better. 

~

Marrow was going to die. He just found the video of him and Weiss and he was mortified. He’d been avoiding his team all day, he just couldn’t bear to face them right now. He’d had enough people in his life telling him how pointless and stupid his music was, he didn’t need any more. Especially not from his team.

“Marrow!” the sound of his name from his captains mouth filled him with a sense of dread, “Why didn’t you ever tell us about this?”

“About what? He said, still not facing what he knew would be his downfall.

“Come on! Don’t play dumb! Your music!” Elm chirped.

Marrow finally turned around to see his captain holding his scroll up, and the video of his and Weiss’s little duet. Brother’s why did he ever agree to do that with her? He should have known something like this would happen. He was such an idiot!

“Oh Brother’s no.” he mumbled, his tail curling slightly around his leg.

Clover beamed at him, “You’re incredible! Why didn’t you ever tell us you could play like that?”

Marrow had heard all this before. The fake compliments and then cruelty that was waiting for him just around the bend, he really didn’t want to deal with this. “I’m not a fan of talking about it.” he mumbled, not meeting his teammate’s eyes.

“Why not?” Elm asked, sounding genuinely confused.

He sighed, “It’s embarrassing.” 

“But you’re amazing! You could probably go pro if you wanted!” Clover exalted.

“I’d… rather not.” he said quietly.

“But you're so good!” Elm cried.

He scoffed, “Yeah. Can I go now?”

Clover gave him a confused look, “Everything alright Marrow?”

“I just have some stuff to do ok?” he responded, a little snippier than he intended.

“Sure, you’re free to go.” Clover said, concern clear in his voice.

“Thanks.” Marrow frowned, turning back around and storming off. He needed to calm down, he was getting too emotional. He was just so pissed right now! He just wasn’t really sure what he was pissed at, himself for agreeing to this, at the people who posted the video, or at Weiss for convincing him to do this. He was confused and that only fueled his frustration, so he pulled out his scroll and searched for some solo missions, one that could let him hit something preferably. 

The next few days passed like this, solo missions, avoiding his team, ghosting Weiss and her friends, and overall just avoiding everyone. He also didn’t touch his violin once in that time, he just couldn’t risk someone else catching him. It all came to a head though one day, he had just gotten back from another solo mission when she came up to him.

“Marrow? Can we talk?” Weiss asked in a pleading tone.

“Talk about what? Talk about how you humiliated me? How I was an idiot for ever agreeing to do anything with you? Cause if that’s it then I don’t wanna hear it.” He snapped, walking away from the former heiress.

“Marrow! Please wait!” Weiss called after him, “I just want to apologize! This was all my fault, and I’m so sorry.”

He stopped and sighed, his anger suddenly leaving. This wasn’t really her fault was it? He didn’t have to agree to play with her. Besides it’s not like she knew about his… past experiences with music. “No… no… I’m sorry Weiss. I shouldn’t have ghosted you like that. I just… I really don’t like people knowing… all of this. Ya know?”

“Yeah. I’m still sorry though.” Weiss said before holding out her hand, “Still friends?”

He smiled a bit and took her hand, “Yeah, still friends.” 

“Hey! Marrow!” he heard Clover call from behind him, “Finally! Feels like I’ve been trying to talk to you for days!” 

“Oh, yeah. Did you need something?” he asked, turning to face his captain.

Clover gave him a concerned look, “You seemed pretty upset the other day when Elm and I tried to talk to you about your music. And then you started avoiding everyone. I just wanted to make sure you’re alright.”

Marrow sighed and looked back at Weiss, “I’m fine sir. Just… I’ve had some not so great experiences with people finding out about my violin. I thought you were doing that too, ya know?”

“Marrow,” Clover said softly, “I meant it when I said you were amazing. I actually hope I get to hear more, I really liked it.”

“Do you-do you really mean that?” Marrow asked hopefully, his tail starting to wag slightly.

Clover chuckled, “Have I ever lied to you before Marrow?”

Marrow ducked his head, “Not yet sir.”

“Exactly. So, I can’t wait to hear more-” he was cut off by Harriet barreling into the room and quickly putting Marrow in a headlock.

“WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL ME YOU WERE A MUSICIAN?” she shouted, practically shoving her face scroll in his face.

Clover and Weiss burst out laughing as Marrow squawked and wriggled in Harriet’s grip, barely holding his own laughter back. Maybe being a little more open about his music wasn’t such a bad thing.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed! If you have any requests or prompts for something you would like to see me write, then just comment below or send me and ask @collectingsoarechangemadeeasy on Tumblr! I only ask that it's RWBY related and SFW and I promise I'll get to it as soon as I can. have a lovely day you guys!


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